1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a video data processing apparatus and method, and, more particularly, to an apparatus and method for processing 3-Dimensional (3D) video.
2. Description of the Related Art
Recently, techniques for providing 3D video using stereoscopic video have been developed. For stereoscopic video, 3D video frames are created by generating two video frames using cameras positioned at two different views, just like viewing an object with both eyes, and combining the generated video frames. The generated video frames are rendered and played by a 3D video output apparatus such that a user may feel a sense of perspective and reality. The 3D video output apparatus plays stereoscopic video in a way of having different 2-Dimensional (2D) images formed on both eyes of a user, or alternately displaying different 2D images on a display.
FIG. 1 illustrates a process of processing 3D video frames created according to the conventional technique.
A 3D video generation apparatus according to a conventional technique generates an original left-video frame 10 and an original right-video frame 11, and generates a sampled left-video frame 12 and a sampled right-video frame 13 by performing ½ sub-sampling on the original left-video frame 10 and the original right-video frame 11, respectively. The 3D video generation apparatus generates a 3D video frame 14 composed in a side-by-side type by horizontally arranging the sampled left-video and right-video frames 12 and 13. The generated 3D video frame 14 is created in 3D video data in the “ISO/IEC FDIS 23000-11:2009 Information technology—Multimedia application format (MPEG-A)-Part 11: Stereoscopic Video Application Format” as illustrated in FIG. 2, and provided to a 3D video output apparatus.
The 3D video output apparatus receives 3D video data, and detects a 3D video frame 15 from the 3D video data. The 3D video output apparatus separates a left-video frame 16 and a right-video frame 17 from the detected 3D video frame 15, and creates a left-video frame 18 and a right-video frame 19 having a resolution size of a display device by scaling the separated left-video frame 16 and the separated right-video frame 17 according to the resolution of the display device, respectively.
Conventionally, the 3D video output apparatus may up-scale the left-video frame 16 and the right-video frame 17 separated from the 3D video frame 15 according to the resolution of the display device regardless of the resolution size of the original video frames, possibly causing distortion of 3D video played on the display device.
Additionally, to generate the 3D video frame 14, the 3D video generation apparatus would perform ½ sub-sampling on the original left-video frame 10 and the original right-video frame 11, leading to a reduction in the resolution of the 3D video.